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Wednesday, May 07, 2003

By Steven Wine, The Associated Press

In six years in the National Football League, David Woodley replaced a future Hall of Famer at quarterback, started in a Super Bowl, and lost his job to another future Hall of Famer.

Mr. Woodley, 44, died of liver and kidney failure Sunday at a hospital in his native Shreveport, La., said his niece, Lucy Woodley. He underwent a liver transplant in 1992.

A former star at Louisiana State, Mr. Woodley played for the Steelers for two seasons. The team acquired him from the Miami Dolphins for a third-round draft choice before the 1984 season. Mr. Woodley had led the Dolphins to Super Bowl XVII after the 1982 season, but the development of former Pitt quarterback Dan Marino made him expendable.

Mr. Woodley won the starting job for the Steelers in 1984. He started seven games, but his season was cut short by a concussion and a leg injury. He replaced injured Mark Malone midway through the 1985 season, starting six games. In his two seasons with the Steelers, Mr. Woodley completed 179 passes in 339 attempts, throwing 14 touchdowns and 21 interceptions. He was 6-7 as a starter.

Mr. Woodley's NFL playing career ended when the Steelers released him before the 1986 season.

With the Dolphins, Mr. Woodley succeeded Bob Griese as a rookie in 1980. He started in the 1983 Super Bowl, which Miami lost 27-17 to Washington. Eight months later he was replaced by Marino, who went on to become the most prolific passer in NFL history.

"David's legacy is that he came in relatively unknown, made our team and helped us win a lot of games," former Dolphins coach Don Shula said yesterday.

Mr. Woodley's biggest asset as a quarterback was his mobility. He had a strong but erratic arm, and he threw 42 interceptions and 34 touchdown passes with the Dolphins.

"For a receiver, David wasn't the easiest guy to play with," said Jimmy Cefalo, his ex-roommate. "He had as strong an arm as anybody I played with. He could throw it through a house, but he didn't have the ability to turn it down a notch."

Mr. Woodley was an eighth-round draft pick who became a starter in Griese's final season, and his 176 completions are still a Dolphins record for a rookie. The following year, Shula alternated Mr. Woodley and Don Strock, a better passer but less mobile quarterback, and they became known as "Woodstrock."

The Dolphins went 11-4-1 that year and won the AFC East. The next season, abbreviated by a strike, they went 7-2 and reached the Super Bowl. Miami led Washington 17-10 at halftime, but Mr. Woodley went 0-for-8 in the second half, and the Redskins rallied to win.

Mr. Woodley returned to Shreveport in 1990. He worked in physical education, sold jewelry and was a radio commentator for high school football games.